This summer, 200 Maine high school students, 18 from a program in Gorham, will have much to share when answering, “How I Spent My Summer Vacation.” For the third year, Gorham High School hosted one of 16 statewide Construction Immersion Programs, an innovative, four-week, hands-on pre-apprenticeship program offered in partnership with Maine Construction Academy(MCA), an education and workforce development operated by the Associated General Contractors of Maine (AGC-Maine).
Gorham resident Kelly Flagg is AGC-Maine’s executive director. She shared how this program exemplifies what’s possible when schools, industry leaders, and community partners collaborate to open doors for Maine youth and build a strong future workforce. This program includes both classroom learning and onsite experiences with five different companies, ensuring that students are both prepared for and exposed to the vast occupational opportunities in the construction industry.
Participants aged 16-20 are responsible for timely attendance Monday thru Friday, 8 am-2pm, during which they earn three nationally recognized credentials including worksite CPR and First Aid, OSHA 10, and National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) Core. NCCER Core covers eight introductory industry units, including construction math, power and hand tools, and construction employability.
On the jobsite, students engage in hands-on experiences such as welding, operating an excavator, and learning to use a climbing system to scale a roof. They also interact with employees and leaders at each company, and learn about this industry as well as what to expect and consider related to salaries, benefits, and growth pathways.
This year the Gorham Program spent days at PC Construction and Great Falls Construction, both commercial builders; Wyman and Simpson, a transportation infrastructure company; Revision Energy; where they learned about solar and clean energy careers, and R.J. Grondin and Sons, a Gorham-based earthworks company.
Larry Grondin, president and 3rd generation owner of R.J. Grondin and Sons is one of the business leaders who took time out to meet with students from the program. Grondin says he commits his 150-employee business to the program because it promotes the industry, but also because it helps young adults decide on a career. He noted that students are also learning important workplace expectations, such as timeliness, and the art of introducing and presenting oneself as a professional. His message to students? “If you show up with a great attitude and want to put the work in, you will do well and advance.”
An additional contributor to the program, Bangor Savings Bank met with students to explain money management, budgeting, retirement planning and 401(K) accounts, breaking down benefits packages, as well as how employee-owned businesses might work.
Workforce Solutions also meets with each student and helps them finalize a resume. They interview each student and provide financial assistance to remove barriers to a career. Flagg noted that on average, about 70% of students participating in the Immersion Program qualify and receive assistance such as gas cards, a career coach, and supplies as needed.
All students leave the program with a developed resume, new steel-toed boots, and a duffel bag with the required Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) for a jobsite, provided by MCA. In addition, all successful participants are guaranteed interviews with employers and post-secondary institutions at a job fair held upon completion, and receive a complete Milwaukee toolset, and a check for $800.
Flagg explained that AGC Maine has accessed grant opportunities through Maine Dept. of Labor, Dept. of Transportation, and the Governor’s Clean Energy Partnership, among others, to help fund the program. In addition to the supplies provided, AGC Maine oversees all programs, secures the training modules, provides the curriculum, trains and certifies the instructor for each program site, and arranges the site visits with their members.
Flagg noted that their team is managing lots of logistics, but is driven by the success of the program, with interest and participation continuing to grow steadily. This year, the Gorham site had a waitlist with 28 applicants. The success extends beyond the time in the program; Flagg noted that in post surveys, 50% of participants had jobs in the construction industry, while half of those were in a formal trades internship.
Gorham School Department was a strong proponent and early adopter of the program, signing on in 2022 for the inaugural year. Flagg noted that Superintendent Perry helped to work out logistics such as space and transportation, and each year the school department staff and that of MCA refine and have grown the program. The program is housed in Gorham Middle School, and staffed by Heather Dupuis, a second-grade teacher at Great Falls Elementary School.
Dupuis answered the email sent by the school department in its first year, seeking an instructor for the summer program, because her father and family are in the construction and building trades, and she was eager to help students explore the career opportunities that exist in Maine. As both an educator and a mother, she knew an expanded and guided pathway toward skilled trades could benefit Gorham students, and the community.
Dupuis completed a 24-hour instructors training and provides the instruction and support to ensure students earn their national credentials. She serves as a chaperone and program site supervisor to enable a smooth operation. Dupuis was quick to credit the many Gorham School Department staff who lend their support and technical assistance, including those in the Aspire program, and the facilities, technology and transportation departments.
This program is free to participants, and Flagg hopes that not only will these programs continue, but that the model and the collaborative partnerships will grow. “AGC Maine is committed to this program and to our local Maine communities,” said Flagg. “We look forward to offering Gorham area students this program for years to come.”